How to Fish Beginner Guide

Your first thirty minutes

Before you wander off, talk to the islanders. Quests are what tell you which drops are hand-in items rather than things to sell — and selling a quest item is the single most annoying mistake available to you this early.

Casting and the line

Fishing here is not a waiting game. You control the cast, react to what bites, and watch the line.

• Tap the hook key, do not hold it. Holding it on a larger fish snaps the line instantly. This is the mechanic that catches out most new players.
• Practise on cheap catches. Crabs and shrimp on the Crab Fishing Rod cost you nothing to lose while you build the timing.
• Match the rod to the target. Crabs, shrimp and lobster need the Crab Fishing Rod — a normal rod will not bring them in no matter how long you wait.

Which bait each catch takes is on the Lighthouse fish list.

What to sell and what to keep

Ordinary catches are income. Anything distinctive is probably a quest item wearing a disguise.

• Sell: common crabs, shrimp, lobster — whatever the island hands you repeatedly.
• Keep: anything shaped like a shell, skull, tail or fin, until you have checked what your quests want.
• Clams are picked up off the ground rather than fished, and are worth holding a couple of as emergency healing.

The Spider Crab

The first boss, and the gate off the island. It will not appear on its own — you bait it with an Empty Beer Can.

1. Buy a knife first. Fists work in co-op, but solo you want the weapon.
2. Let it charge, then step aside. It telegraphs the rush, and it stuns itself when it misses.
3. One or two hits, then back off. Three or four claw hits will kill you, so greed is what loses this fight rather than damage.
4. Keep a clam or two for healing if it goes badly.

Full detail on the Spider Crab page.

Leaving the Lighthouse

Buy the Radar before you sail. It is cheap, and once quests start handing out coordinates rather than directions you will be guessing without it.

Next stop is Forest, where the Beginner Lure takes over andthe Giant Piranha is waiting.

Mistakes that cost the most time

• Selling the shell. The trophy is the key, not the payout.
• Holding the hook key. Snapped line, lost fish, every time.
• Skipping the Radar because it looks like a luxury on a small island.
• Buying broadly. One weapon you can use beats three you half-can.
• Trusting a crash to save. Since Patch 1.0.6 it does not — use the Save button at clean stopping points. More on saving.